Social Media

Twitter Now Lets "X Factor" Viewers Vote via DMs

The fate of the 12 remaining contestants on the U.S. version of The X Factor will be in the hands of the viewers starting Nov. 2., and they'll now have a new way to support their favorite performer: Twitter direct message-enabled voting.

Though other shows have used Twitter to create buzz, The X Factor will become the first TV competition to tally DM votes to help determine a winner.

“The X Factor has raised the bar for innovative television with its use of Twitter," says Chloe Sladden, Twitter's director of content and programming. "We’re thrilled to see the creators of The X Factor push the envelope further by being the first television show to formalize this phenomenon through Twitter voting.”

Social media and technology continue to change the public's TV-watching experience, but the evolution of social TV has affected competition shows the most.

For example, American Idol let viewers vote on the show's Facebook Page during season 10. The Voice — a new singing competition that became a 24/7 social media conversation earlier this year — allowed viewers to vote by buying the contestants' songs on iTunes. And design competition Project Runway let fans use Twitter hashtags to vote for a "Fan Favorite" every episode

The shows hope the new voting methods spark social buzz that will lead to better ratings.

"Launching touch screen voting on Verizon’s The Xtra Factor App and the new voting on Twitter is really exciting," says the show's star judge Simon Cowell. "I love that the audience has more and more choice in the way that they can vote."

To vote on Twitter, viewers must follow @TheXFactorUSA and DM their votes to that handle. Regular tweets will not be tallied. The X Factor has set a limit of 50 votes for viewers voting on the show's website and on Twitter, while voting via SMS, SMS in-app and telephone is unlimited.

BONUS: Most Popular Contestants Based on YouTube Views

In the video gallery below, Mashable ranked the top 12 contestants (as well as the 5 eliminated semi-finalists) based on YouTube page views for their Oct. 25 performances. The page view tallies are from the morning of Nov. 2.

Drew Ryniewicz, Astro (Brian Bradley) and Melanie Amaro came out as the clear favorites on YouTube. Flip through the gallery to see how the rest of the finalists fared:

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is a leading source for news, information and resources for the Connected Generation. Mashable reports on the importance of digital innovation and how it empowers and inspires people around the world. Mashable's record 42 million unique visitors worldwide and 21 million social media followers are one of the most influential and engaged online communities. Founded in 2005, Mashable is headquartered in New York City with an office in San Francisco.